According to the historian Sima Qian, Yu did not want his son to become king and intended to give the throne to Gao Yao, his Minister of Justice, but when Gao died Yu designated as his heir Yi (also known as Boyi), his former companion for thirteen years fighting the flood and his current Minister of Animal Husbandry.

[3] But due to Yu's great influence, all the leaders of the Xia states came to admire Qi instead of Yi, so Yi had no choice but to pass up the throne to Qi at the end of three years of mourning for Yu.

Qi got his throne in the year of Guihai (癸亥), and he celebrated his inauguration with all his vassals (諸侯) at Juntai (鈞臺, a platform that used to be in Yuzhou city in Henan.).

The Bamboo Annals record the following events for Qi's reign:[4] The Eastern Zhou anthology Discourses of the States mentions Qi as one of the examples of originally virtuous kings who would beget wicked sons.

[5] The Classic of Mountains and Seas mentions Qi several times, as 啟; Qǐ and 開; Kǎi:[6] he is depicted as a fanciful shamanic intermediary who received sacred dances and music from the Supreme God (aka Shangdi 上帝).